Crawley Claims Ignorance of Captain Stokes' Provocative 'Weak Men' Comments
England opener Zak Crawley has indicated he was not familiar with comments made by skipper Ben Stokes regarding the team environment not being "weak men".
The all-rounder delivered those words in several interviews in the wake of England's defeat in the second Ashes series against the Australians earlier this month.
In the lead-up to the Adelaide Test, where England are staring at a series loss at the earliest opportunity, Stokes stated he had let his sentiment to "circulate freely" among the playing group.
"I've done all the talking in recent days that I needed to have done," remarked the England leader.
But, after Crawley scored 85 on the penultimate day in Adelaide, he stated: "I didn't see that."
"I didn't see and wasn't really looking out for it. Our approach is to take everything that is said in the press with some skepticism," Crawley continued.
Frank Discussions and Consistent Messaging
Stokes issued his "fragile individuals" comment subsequent to his side suffered a loss in the second Test to go 2-0 down.
The England squad afterwards took a break to a Queensland resort in the gap between the second and third Tests.
Prior to the Adelaide contest, he said his players had held "honest" talks and he had asked them to "display some fight" in their effort to remain alive in the Ashes battle.
Yet, Crawley stated the guidance from Stokes and coach McCullum had remained consistent with their prior tenure in leadership.
"The atmosphere has been extremely upbeat, the same as always," said the opener. "It's just trying to be optimistic, play our way, with great liberty. It felt like we were capable of something special going into this game."
The Hosts On the Verge of Rapid Ashes Triumph
The opener's dismissal late on Saturday came during a decisive triple-strike by Australia spinner Lyon.
Lyon's three wickets in 20 deliveries – he also bowled Brook and Ben Stokes – meant the chasing side 207-6 in pursuit of a notional target of 435.
Consequently, the home team need four wickets on the last day to secure an insurmountable three-nil lead after three Tests.
Defeat would prolong the English team's drought in this country to 18 consecutive matches and ensure a fourth successive overseas Ashes series defeat.
The current battle will be completed in just eleven days of play – after England losing the initial matches in rapid time respectively.
The last time 1921, when Australia sealed a series win in England in eight days, has the destination of the urn been determined more swiftly. The hosts have also triumphed in 11 days on two other instances in the 21st century.
"It's disheartening," admitted the batsman. "Our goal was to regain the Ashes and we're staring down the barrel now."
"There will still be significant pride at stake and we'll certainly approach it like that," he continued.
"The challenge has been difficult. They're a very, very good side. It was inevitably hard touring here against them. They entered as the front-runners and they've proven why."
Ollie Pope's Position In Question
While the opener's performance in Adelaide probably answers doubts about his short-term place in the England team, Ollie Pope appears under threat for his spot in the fourth Test starting December 26th.
The Surrey batsman fell for 17 in the team's second innings on day four, adding to his poor record against Australia.
Across 16 Ashes innings, Pope has never made a half-century and averages just 17.62.
A solitary other English batsman since 1900 – Dennis Amiss – has played an equal number of innings in the top six in Ashes Tests and recorded a lower average.
However, the opener insisted any notion Pope is being scrutinised comes from "the media" – referring to the press – "not inside the camp."
"We all know how good of a player he is," added he. "Ollie has enjoyed a good year if I'm honest."
"He has played some really good knocks. It is talk from the outside. There's no discussion of that nature on Ollie amongst the players," Crawley concluded.
